Arles, 11 July 2011, Art Media Agency (AMA).
The Rencontres d’Arles has been making headlines in the art world, as the Centre Pompidou announced on 9 July 2011 that it would be acquiring the Christian Bouqueret Collection, comprising more than 6,700 photographs. The purchasing price has not been revealed, but the Yves Rocher cosmetics company is financing the operation and will receive a tax deduction of 90% of the amount spent on the collection.
Christian Bouqueret spent his entire life collecting art and devoted himself to acquiring the work of photographers who worked in Paris in the 1920’s and 1930’s, including unknown and famous photographers such as Man Ray, Claude Cahun, Dora Maar, Germaine Krull, François Kollar, Brassaï, Kertész, Laure Albin-Guillot, Emmanuel Sougez, René Jacques, Jean Moral and Raoul Ubac.
To complete his collection, Bouqueret did not hesitate to buy the works of an entire workshop or artists deemed second-rate. He wished to revive the memory of these forgotten figures; organising numerous exhibitions, publishing monographs and undertaking research. He initiated the “Paris capitale photographique, 1920 – 1940” exhibition at Jeu de Paume in 2009.
“The Christian Bouqueret Collection completes our collection,” explained Quentin Bajac, one of the curators of the museum to French daily newspaper Le Monde. The entire set of photographs will be restored and displayed at the Centre Pompidou in 2012.